Shrugging it off, she managed a small smile for him. “Nothing, just not that hungry.”
He didn’t seem to buy it as he stared hard at her. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” She studied him carefully for a moment, her questions from earlier returning to her. “Devon, where do you live?”
Quirking an eyebrow, a small smile flitted across his full lips. “Is that what has you so distracted?”
Cassie shrugged absently. “I just realized that I don’t know much about you.”
Something flickered in his eyes. It was a quick flash, but she was certain that she saw it. She couldn’t be sure what it had been though, but for a moment she thought it was fear. But why would her question cause him fear? “Well, we will have to remedy that,” he said softly, his hand tightened briefly around hers. “My place is in Oyster Hills.”
Cassie blinked in surprise; she didn’t know much about Oyster Hills, except for the fact that it was very expensive, and highly upscale. “Wow. What do your parents do?”
His jaw clenched tight, a muscle jumped in his cheek. “They’re dead.”
Cassie gasped, horror filled her. “I’m so sorry; I know how awful that is.”
He shrugged absently, his finger caressing her hand lightly. “It was a long time ago.”
“But the hole never heals,” she whispered.
His distant gaze came back to hers, tender and loving as he studied her. “I suppose not.”
Swallowing heavily, she leaned closer to him, hoping to ease some of the pain she knew such a passing left. “Do you mind me asking what happened?” she inquired softly.
He hesitated for a moment, before shrugging. “They were killed.”
Cassie’s eyes widened, anguish filled her as she studied his hard countenance. Though curiosity filled her, she decided against pressing further. She knew how much it could upset someone; how the wound never completely healed. No matter how much time passed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”
He smiled at her, kissing her hand gently. “Anything you wish to know, you just ask.”
Leaning closer to him, she was surprised to realize that she had completely forgotten about the noise and confusion of the cafeteria. He had a way about him that made it very easy to forget that the rest of the world even existed. He had a way that made it impossible to focus on anything, except him. She rested her head on his shoulder, savoring in his scent as he gently caressed her hair.
Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to drift into him, relishing in the comfort that he brought her. “Would you like to see my place today?”
She glanced up at him, grinning brightly as she nodded. “I would.”
His eyes twinkled merrily as he dropped a chaste kiss upon her forehead. The memory of the passionate kiss they had shared last night assailed her, leaving her longing for more. For a moment a tremor of fear trickled through her. What would happen if they went to his place alone? Though the thought did arise some fear, she couldn’t stop her pulse from racing with excitement.
A new commotion snapped her eyes to the center of the cafeteria. Marcy had grabbed a chair and was pulling it into the center of the room. Mrs. Kindel shook her head, but didn’t stop her as Marcy brought forth a microphone and climbed onto the chair. Cassie had no idea where the microphone had come from; she didn’t want to know either.
“Hello, testing.” Everyone in the room winced as the microphone squealed loudly. “Ok, I have some announcements to make,” Marcy continued when the noise died down.
Cassie glanced at Melissa, who smiled superiorly back at her and gave a quick wink. Groaning inwardly, she slid slightly down in her chair, hoping that she could somehow be overlooked. Devon was frowning in confusion; his dark eyebrows were drawn tightly together as he studied Marcy like some strange bug.
“What’s this about?” he asked quietly.
“Homecoming nominations.”
Uncertainty swirled in his eyes. Cassie stared questioningly at him, but he didn’t say anything more. For a moment, she could have sworn that he hadn’t known what she was talking about. But that couldn’t be possible, no matter how small a school he had come from, they would still have homecoming, wouldn’t they?
He leaned slightly back, his emerald eyes darting to Marcy as a mask of indifference slipped over his face. Cassie’s hand tightened briefly around his as doubt continued to swirl through her. He glanced back at her, his eyes darker and more intense than normal. Their eyes locked forcefully, Cassie’s heartbeat picked up. All of her doubts vanished as she was lost to him once more. His thumb stroked over her skin, causing her body to heat everywhere. She could not wait to be alone with him later.
“Now, when I call your name please come up here. Thanks. Nominees for homecoming king are Mark Young, Hector Rodriguez, Jack Wells, Chris Tempen….”
Cassie beamed happily, clapping loudly as Marcy called off Chris’s name. Chris’s fair skin blazed red as he stood to a raucous chorus of cheers and whistles. He bowed and waved to everyone as if he were royalty. Marcy frowned angrily, her voice breaking off as the cheers continued. Chris and Jack were pounded on the back by the rest of the football team as they made their way to the center of the room, and Marcy.
“Ok, settle down!” Marcy called into the microphone. She waited impatiently, her foot tapping, and her arms folded across her chest as the cheers slowly died down. Marcy rolled her eyes but as she glanced down at the piece of paper in her hand, a sly smile played across her lips. A feeling of foreboding stole through her. “The final nominee is Devon Knight.”
Cassie’s mouth parted slightly, shock coursed rapidly through her as cries of delight, and loud clapping sounded through the room. It was mostly the girls that applauded and shouted, making it apparent which side of the nomination he had received. Cassie turned slowly back to him. He was sitting stiffly in his chair, a blank expression on his face, but a hard gleam in his eyes. This was not his thing, not at all, and it was more than obvious that he didn’t want it. She wasn’t entirely sure he even knew what it meant.
Then he moved swiftly, sliding elegantly from his chair as he rose gracefully. He glanced down at Cassie, warmth momentarily melting the ice in his eyes. Gently releasing her, he moved swiftly and elegantly to stand beside Chris. The cheers grew louder, the higher pitch of the girl’s voices reverberated in the large cafeteria. Though some of the boys clapped, including Chris, most did not.
This time, Marcy did not urge everyone to quiet down as she smiled brilliantly. Instead, she waited patiently for the commotion to stop. Anger filled Cassie as she glanced around the cafeteria, taking note of all the girls staring ravenously at Devon. Marcy was the worst offender, as her crush on Chris had obviously switched to Devon. Though Cassie knew that Devon did not want any of them, she still didn’t like the fact that they all wanted him. And not a one of them gave a damn that he was already with her.
“It’s ok,” Melissa said softly, leaning forward to be heard over the commotion.
“I know.”
“Then why are you glaring at every girl in this room like you want to hit them?” she inquired.
“Maybe not every girl.”
“Just Marcy?” Cassie couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped her as she shook her head at Melissa’s teasing.
Cassie tried to catch Devon’s eye, but he did not look at her again as he studied the other boys. Jack and Hector were playfully pushing each other; Mark was wearing a goofy grin and flexing his muscles. Chris was standing quietly, his arms folded over his chest, but he was beaming from ear to ear as he winked at the girls closest to him. They all looked so young and immature, Devon seemed vastly older and out of place amongst them.
Cassie’s heartbeat picked up, her hands curled on the table. Who was he? She wondered again. Why did he seem so far beyond her age, and everyone else’s?
“Now the nominees for homecoming queen,” Marcy continued when the noise finally quieted down. “The nominees are Amanda Jenkins, Sharon Crosby,
Kelly Standish, Cassandra Fairmont…” Loud cheers and whistles erupted around the room as she rose, but unlike Devon, her appreciative audience was mostly male.
Cassie flushed hotly as she slipped from the table. She tried to keep her shoulders straight as she hurried to stand beside Kelly. The dark, angry looks from most of the girls in the room followed her, along with the leering stares of the boys. Her skin crawled with the mixed emotions blazing against her. Trying to keep as collected as she could, she kept her face expressionless, but inwardly she was a seething mass of turmoil.
Marcy sighed loudly, tapping impatiently at the microphone to get everyone’s attention. Slowly the caterwauling died down with only a few whistles and shouts still piercing the air. Devon’s face had become even harder, his jaw clenched tight as he met Cassie’s gaze briefly. It was apparent that he disliked the attention of the men toward her, almost as much as she did. She wished that she could reach out and touch him; she desperately needed the comfort that he always brought her.
“And finally,” Marcy continued with a bright grin on her face. “Myself.”
There was more applause, but it was not as enthusiastic, and Marcy was unable to hide her annoyance. “Here are your nominees for king and queen, voting will begin in two weeks. Everyone, consider your candidates carefully and vote on the people you think deserve it most. Thank you all.”
Marcy dismounted from her chair, eagerly accepting the congratulations she received as she made her way through the crowd. Cassie wished she could be as thrilled as Marcy, but she had never wanted popularity, never wanted the attention that came with it. Unfortunately she had been launched into the role during her freshman year, when puberty set in.
It had taken her awhile to learn how to deal with the sudden influx of interest. Over the years she had gotten a lot better with it, but she still did not like being thrust into the spotlight. And she most certainly did not want to be swamped by a bunch of people trying to congratulate her. She was not surprised that most of them were boys.
Devon was also surrounded by a group of well wishers, most of them girls, but a few of the guys had appeared to shake his hand. He looked highly uncomfortable as Ariel Drake grasped hold of his hand, clutching it tightly, nearly falling over him as she leaned close. Cassie fought back a smile of amusement as he gave Ariel a wan smile while discreetly trying to free his hand from her death grip. He finally succeeded but Janet and Jenna Howe immediately pounced upon him. Cassie heaved a sigh, realizing that she would have to rescue him if he was ever going to get free of the swarm of girls. And from the look on his face, he was in desperate need of rescuing.
Mark Johnson stepped swiftly in front of her, blocking her attempt at reaching Devon. Fighting back the fierce urge to groan and roll her eyes, Cassie met his dark, stormy gaze. “Hello Cassandra, I’ve been trying to get you alone for the past few days, but you’re always busy.”
Cassie glanced back at Devon, but now he was encircled by Linda Drake, Helen Potts, and Marcy had reappeared. He was never going to get free on his own now. “I’m sorry Mark…”
She tried to move around him, but he sidestepped, swiftly blocking her path. She frowned up at him, aggravated by the interruption. “I just wanted to congratulate you Cassandra.” Mark always called her by her full name; she suspected it was because he thought it would separate him from everyone else in her life. It did not. His eyes sparked as his gaze ran appreciatively over her. Unable to stop herself, she took an involuntary step back. She hated the way his leering look always made her feel as if he could see right through her clothes. Her skin began to crawl in disgust. “Maybe you’ll be my queen.”
As much as the idea made her stomach turn, Cassie managed a brief nod. “Maybe.”
She tried to sidestep him again, but once again he blocked her path. Her aggravation level mounting, she folded her arms firmly over her chest as she stared fiercely at him. “I was thinking that maybe we could go to B’s and S’s tonight,” Cassie was already shaking her head, but he continued on. “Maybe catch a movie.”
“No Mark, I’m sorry.”
He blocked her path once more when she tried to escape him. This time however, there was no amusement, or leering, in his fierce gaze. Cassie was stunned by the depth of anger that radiated from his deep brown eyes. “Is this because you’ve become the new guy’s toy?”
Cassie blinked in surprise, and then anger flared through her. “I’m nobody’s toy Mark!” she snapped.
“Slut then?”
The word snapped all the anger out of her as shock and horror rolled forth. She had never been called that before, never been verbally attacked like this before. Oh, she had been called many things over the years, but never this, and not with this much anger, and hatred. It was the hatred that shocked her most, leaving her speechless and shaken. She had never been hated before, never thought it would feel like this. It left her hollow and uncertain.
She took a step back, just wanting to escape now, but he followed her. His eyes burned as he bore down upon her, his mouth pursed, and his large shoulders set stiffly. She did not fear for her physical safety, she didn’t think he would do anything here, and she knew that she was stronger than he was. If she could fight off a vampire, she could fight off one very angry teenage boy, but it was the last thing that she wanted to do in a crowded cafeteria. However, she was concerned about what he would say next, and she was certain that she didn’t want to hear any more of it.
“You know what you are Cassandra, you’re just a tease. You’re a twisted bitch that loves to tease people, playing with their emotions and wrapping them around your little finger.”
Cassie’s mind stuttered, searching for words that momentarily failed her. Swallowing heavily, she tried hard to think of something that would somehow ease the tension of the situation. “I have never led you on Mark,” she said gently, fairly certain that he was about to explode.
“You walk around here, strutting around like you’re better than all of us!” he snapped.
Bile rose in Cassie’s throat, her stomach turned and knotted painfully. The words stung like a whip, but it was the cold fury radiating from him that made her want to throw up. She did not know what was wrong with Mark, what had sparked this fury inside him, but she did know that he was swiftly losing control. She looked quickly around; searching for some kind of help, but everyone was busy congratulating the nominees, or escaping for their next class. She couldn’t even see Devon anymore, Mark completely blocked him out.
She was on her own.
“Mark, I’m sorry, I…”
“You’re a whore!”
Cassie’s mouth dropped open as shock and horror once more slammed through her. Her arms encircled her stomach in an effort to try and keep her lunch down. She wasn’t entirely certain that it was going to work as her stomach lurched threateningly. “Mark…”
“A no good whore,” he growled. He reached for her, but Cassie turned aside, just barely dodging his beefy hand. Disgust filled her, slowing her to the point that she could hardly move. Rage blazed through his eyes, it flared his nostrils. For the first time, she was afraid of the fury that suffused him. She was not entirely sure that she could beat someone that was as crazed as Mark obviously seemed to be right now. “Whore! Giving it away to everyone…”
Mark was suddenly ripped back; his feet came off the floor as he was pulled two feet up and away from her. Cassie’s eyes widened in surprise, her mouth dropped. For a stunned moment she didn’t know what had happened, who had grabbed hold of him. And then she saw Devon as he shoved Mark against the wall, his hand wrapped fiercely around Mark’s throat. His green eyes were dark and dangerous, his lithe body taught with the anger that radiated from him.
“Don’t you ever talk to her like that again!” he snarled, his hand tightening around Mark’s neck. Mark coughed, beginning to struggle within Devon’s grasp as his eyes bulged. “Do you understand me?”
Mark nodded enthusiastically, coughing again as he struggled to
breathe. His fingers clawed at the tight hold Devon had upon him, but Devon’s grip did not lessen. Though Devon was slightly shorter and not as broad as Mark, it was more than obvious that he was quite capable of beating Mark in a fight. In fact, Cassie was fairly certain that Mark wouldn’t stand a chance.
Devon’s hand tightened briefly, causing panic to flash across Mark’s features. “If you ever even talk to her again,” Devon growled his voice pitched so low that even Cassie had to strain to hear him. “I will make you pay for it, and I will make this look like it was a good time.”
A chill swept down her spine at the threat, a threat she was certain he would make good on. Mark managed another brief nod, his gaze darted briefly toward Cassie, his eyes rolled with panic. Devon shoved him back hard again, releasing him at the same time. Slumping forward, Mark rested his hands on his knees as he gasped for air. Devon took a step toward her, putting his body effectively between the two of them.
Cassie peered around Devon’s back, too flabbergasted to fully comprehend everything that had just happened. Mark’s face was beet red, either from lack of oxygen, or anger. His shoulders were set tightly, but he did not look at either of them as he stormed into the crowd. Cassie’s eyes widened as she took in the students still present to witness what had just happened. Though the cafeteria had emptied a lot, there were at least twenty of them still gathered about. It would only be a matter of time before this incident was all over the school. Oh well, she thought with a sigh, she hadn’t wanted to campaign for homecoming queen anyway.
Devon turned toward her, his eyes fierce and dark, his hard jaw clenched tight. “Are you ok?” Cassie blinked at him in surprise, unable to get her malfunctioning brain to work correctly as she tried to focus her full attention on him. “Cassie, are you ok?”
He seized gently hold of her, pulling her a step closer to him. The touch she had always found so soothing, now only served to confuse and disorient her more. What she had just seen, it couldn’t have been possible, could it? She studied him carefully, her mind spinning. Could a human be that strong?